Two of a Kind
by Deducing-Angel
Summary: Maria is an American-who flew over to London to work- who has an extraordinary gift. She can basically tell you your life story with one look. Before work one day, she meets a man with the same ability: Sherlock Holmes. What happens when these two work on a case together? IF YOU DON'T LIKE A BIT OF CUSSING, GO TO MY OTHER STORY "A Tale of Deduction"
1. Maria's Backstory

Maria's Backstory

Biography

Maria Grace Campbell was born May 7, 1984 in Austin, Texas. She is the only child in her family. Her mom (Gabriella) left Maria and her dad (Robert) when Maria was six years old. Robert and Maria then moved to Gary, Indiana- where she lived until she graduated high school. Her dad got a job as a secretary at a major law enforcement office.

He noticed that Maria was extremely talented, even at a young age, and trained her how to "properly" use her deduction skills. He "borrowed" solved cases and told her to figure them out (he took out the answers, of course). After a few years, he handed her 3 cold cases to figure out. She solved each one that week.

Maria never really had friends. When people tried to talk to her, she either called them idiots or creeped them out with her skills. She eventually gave up on finding a friend and stuck to her cold cases (which she was now getting paid to solve). In 7th grade, her school counselor convinced her to sign up for a pen-pal. After a week-or-so of waiting, she got a letter saying that her pen-pal was a girl in 5th grade named Emily Brown, who lived in London, England. After just a few letters, the pair instantly became friends. They had even made plans for Emily to fly over and visit Maria.

When Maria was 27, she moved to London and lived with Emily. She looked for work, but found nothing and was unemployed for almost two weeks. Finally, Em found a job as a policewoman for her. Due to her over-qualifying resume, she was instantly promoted to Rookie Detective.

On her first day, she was forced- by her boss, Anderson- to deal with the people in jail cells (phone calls, bail, drunken profanity, etc.). One man got a bit handsy with her, so he knocked him down- and out- with the karate skills she learned as a young girl. She's not allowed anywhere near the jail cells anymore.

Profile

**Full name:** Maria Grace Campbell

**Age:** 27

**Job:** Rookie Detective; "I'm probably gonna get fired soon"

**Traits:** intelligent; sarcastic; cocky; violent;

**Talents:** "I can curl my tongue!"; deducing

**Sports:** karate (has achieved black belt); boxing; wrestling

**Hobbies:** "Pissing off strangers"; boxing; gun practice; throwing knives; basically anything with weapons or violence…

**Spare Time:** working out; weapon/fight practice; cases

**Music: **"Flordia Georgia Line and Good Charlotte, with a bit of Kansas"

**Friend(s):** Emily Brown

**Trustworthy:** Sherlock Holmes; John Watson; Ms. Hudson

**"Baddies": **Anderson; Three Brothers; everyone else

**Love Life: **"Non-existent. Probably 'cus I _piss people off for fun_"

Thoughts on…

**Sherlock: **"He's cute and all, but he needs to stop going through my closet. I swear he was wearing my purple shirt the other day."

**John: **"He's like a cute, friendly hedgehog. He tends to keep Sherlock in check- which I'm grateful for- but if he hurts my Em, I'll snap his neck.

**Anderson:** "Anderson's an ass-wipe. Don't tell him I said that."

**Ms.** **Hudson: **"She's nice for a lady that hired a man to get her husband executed…"

**London (the city): **"It's _extremely-effing-dull. _It just needs a few good serial killers to liven up the place"


	2. Chapter 1

Two of a Kind

**Author's Note**: This is my first fanfic, and I think I suck at writing. But everyone thinks they suck when they begin, so don't think much about that. Also, I'm a freshie in high school right now, so it might be a bit hard to upload on a regular basis. Also, I do plan on finishing this fic. It might be a while though. And, thank you, The-Alicorn-of-Deduction. You inspired me to write this. (Sorry if I accidentally steal anything of yours :/ )

**I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THE CHARACTERS BESIDES MARIA AND EMILY. **

Chapter 1

*The Girl's POV*

_I knew I should have brought my umbrella…_ Maria thought. The cold rain stung her face as she was hurrying home. She pulled her overcoat collar up over her scarf and turned the street corner.

She was coming home from a long day at work. Dealing with so many angry-and occasionally drunk- idiots became stressful. One got 'toughened up' a bit. After that, her boss told her to go home for the night.

She opened the door to her flat and yelled, "I'm home, Em!" She walked in and shut the door with the back of her heel.

"Finally," Emily said, walking to the front door. "I was getting worried. How was-"

"Dreadful," She hung up her dripping overcoat on the hook by the door and untwirled her scarf from around her neck and placed it beside her coat. Sulking to the living room, she kicked off her shoes and plopped on the couch.

"It can't be _that _bad. It's only your second day on the job." Em began to walk to the kitchen, "Care for any tea?"

"Sure," Maria rested her feet on the end of the couch. _How can such idiots be alive? _She thought back to her work day, rubbing her bruised knuckles.

Emily set the tea cups on the small tray and filled them. "I hope she didn't take her anger out on anyone," Em muttered. She can be a bit aggressive.

"So… got any new-"

"Nothing," Maria interrupted. "How can London be so…boring? The U.S. was never this dull." She sat up a bit and took her tea cup.

"Well, you just haven't seen the exciting side yet," Em moved Maria's feet and sat on the end of the couch.

Maria rolled her eyes and sipped her tea.

"Oh, give London a chance! You've only been here a week or so."

"Three weeks."

Three weeks," Em corrected, "and you've only been on the job for two days. Just…give the place a chance. You might like it here."

Maria sat her cup down and walked to her bedroom without saying a word. She shut the door and layed face-down on her bed.

"Goodnight," Em said loudly and sighed. She put both her cup and Maria's half-drunk cup on the tray and took them to the kitchen sink. _What am I going to do with her?_

*The Boy's POV*

John came through the front door with heavy bags of groceries in his hands.

"Please shut up. Your stupidity is emanating through the phone and- Hello?" Sherlock's voice carried through the flat.

"Another case?" John walked to the kitchen and sat the bags down on the floor. He began putting up the produce.

"Of course not," Sherlock hung up the phone and lied on the couch, his back facing the room.

"What about Myc-"

"Why would I ask my brother for anything?" Sherlock interrupted.

"Just…asking," John put up the last of the groceries and walked to the living room. He sat in his usual chair. Sherlock didn't say anything and listened intently, hoping to hear the wail of police sirens nearby.

"Nothing new? Really?" John seemed surprised.

"Besides the fact that you're wearing perfume? No." Sherlock smirked, though he knew John couldn't see him.

"Perfume…ho- oh! The new nurse ran into me coming out of the ladies room. That must be it."

"Seems so. Number?"

"Uh…no. But I did get a name. Emily. And the poor thing has an American flatmate." John joked.

"American?" Sherlock asked. He sat up a bit.

"Yes. Moved in a few weeks ago. Why?" John wondered why Sherlock was interested in that. Maybe he really _was_ bored.

"An American woman was just hired at the police station. Anderson told me 'not to contaminate her'."

John chuckled a bit, "It might be her. I'm off to bed. Goodnight Sherlock," he got up and left for his bedroom. Sherlock muttered something that sounded like, "Goodnight, John" and headed straight for his laptop. He began searching for anything that would tell him who the American woman was. Or, at least her name. _This is what happens when you let a consulting detective get bored._ He thought to himself


	3. Chapter 2

Two of a Kind

**Author's Note**: I have a beta going over my chapters now! Yay! Maybe they won't be crap. (I live in AL, expect some redneck language from me). So… I don't really have much to say except:

**I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THE CHARACTERS BESIDES MARIA AND EMILY**

Chapter 2

*Maria's and Sherlock's POV*

Light shone through Maria's eyelids as she began to wake up. She sat up and blocked the sun from her eyes with her hand. She glanced at the clock beside her. 10:26. She was late.

Scrambling out of bed, she began to think of an excuse to give when she arrived to work late. She got ready as fast as she could, stumbling once or twice, and rushed to the kitchen. Em had just made coffee and was holding a cup.

"Oh, thanks," Maria grabbed the cup and went to the front door to put on her coat and scarf.

"You're lucky I made extra!" Em yelled as Maria walked out the door and onto the pavement. She hailed a cab and drank a big gulp, burning the top of her mouth a bit.

The cab pulled up and a tall man stepped out. _Whoa_, Maria thought, _He's pretty cute._ He was tall and had dark, curly hair. He stood confidently and towered a bit over Maria (_Just like everyone else_, she thought). Looking down at her, he excused himself and moved out of the way.

"Thanks," Maria began to step in, when the man stopped her.

"Do you know where Maria Campbell is?" He asked. She was thinking about saying no, but then she would feel guilty later.

"You just caught her,"

"Oh, good. I wanted to talk to you."

"Can it wait? I need to head to work."

"Good idea. We can talk in the cab." The man held open the door, gesturing for her to step inside.

"Sure…" she stepped in and scooted to the other side, careful not to spill her coffee. He stepped in and closed the door in one swift movement.

"Police station," he said, and then he turned to Maria. The cab pulled out, and Maria was confused for a second. She thought they were on the wrong side of the road again.

"So, how's the new job?" the man asked her.

"Aggravating," she took another gulp of coffee," and I'm guessing you're the 'Sherlock' everyone has told me about."

"People talk about me?"

"More like gossip, but yea."

"Oh. Figures," Silence filled the cab. Maria felt a bit uncomfortable and tried to break the ice.

"You have questions," Maria said, expecting him to deny.

"No I don't."

She sighed, "You can't stop moving your right thumb. A sign of nervousness." He looked down at it and willed it to stop. Looking back, he 'scanned' her.

American. Just got out of bed. No time to brush her hair so she just put it up. Late night at work last night. Punched a man with her right fist, therefore she's right-handed. Confident in everything she does, which can be bad. Pistol hidden in her belt loop. Unmatching earrings. No kids or relationship of any kind, besides the one friend. Obviously intelligent.

"I don't have questions," Sherlock said, "because I already know you"

She didn't look very surprised, but said nothing, letting him continue. She saw a spark in his eyes as he did, like he enjoyed this.

When he was finally done, he looked to see her reaction. She was happily taking out her earrings. _Happy? Why is she happy? She should be shocked or tell me to "Piss off" or something._ Sherlock became confused, but didn't let it show.

"Well," she stuffed the earrings in her overcoat pocket,"I might as well tell you what I know now."

"Me? Well, you can try," He leaned back against his seat, ready to criticize her on her 'deduction skills', but still wondering about her sudden cheeriness.

"Okay. You think you're 'all that', and you have no romantic relationship currently. Probably never had one. You live with a roommate, whom you trust, and you perform lab experiments there. Just got done with one, actually," She started. Sherlock began to sit up. She continued, "The police hate you, yet they keep you around. Clearly you're useful to them. Most likely when they're stumped or stuck on a case. No breakfast this morning- which you should eat in the morning- and you didn't brush your hair. You just ran your hands through it. And- why are you staring at me?"

Sherlock was shocked for what seemed like the first time of his life. She could deduce with the same speed and capability of him. Does she even know? "You can tell that just from looking at me?"

"Well, by listening to the way you talk, and a few other things," _She's trying to be modest. Why?_

The cab suddenly stopped. "Here we are," a gruff voice came from the front of Sherlock. Maria stepped out of the cab and closed the door, while digging through her overcoat pockets to find money. Sherlock did the same, but got his money faster. "Here," he handed the cabbie the cash and walked to the front door.

Maria looked up and saw this. _Wow, the cute guy can be nice. I'm startin to like this. _She walked around the cab and followed Sherlock through the front door of the police station.

"Hey Maria ca- why is _he _here?" her boss gestured to Sherlock with a yellow file in his hand.

"Nice to see you too Anderson," Sherlock said, grabbing the file and flipping through it, "I was just walking her to work."

"Give me _that_," Anderson snatched the file from his hands. "I thought I told you I don't want you getting any ideas in her head," Maria raised her eyebrow at that, but said nothing.

"Too late," Sherlock patted Maria's shoulder, "she's just like me."


	4. Chapter 3

Two of a Kind

**Author's Note**: It was kinda awkward for me to write John's POV, so I'm sorry if it sucks. Oh, and I forgot to mention. It's set after episode two of Sherlock, so no Moriarty yet. And if you don't mind, please review. I'm kinda curious about what you think of the story.

**I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THE CHARACTERS BESIDES MARIA AND EMILY. **

Chapter 3

*John's POV*

John walked into the hospital, partly searching for Emily. She was at the main desk, entering a patient into the computer.

"Hey, Emily," John walked up and leaned on the desk.

"Morning, John," Emily looked up and smiled.

"Um... quick question. Is your flatmate's name Maria?" Sherlock had told him about the research that morning. He was hoping it was a coincidence.

"Yes, why?" She suddenly looked a bit concerned, "Tell me she didn't get into a fight and I need to bail her out."

"No, my friend Sherlock wanted to know. He didn't stop by your place, did he?" She looked a bit relieved knowing her friend didn't punch out some poor guy or get arrested.

"You live with Sherlock?"

"You know him?"

"Sort of. The police told us he was obnoxious and cocky," Emily typed in the rest of the patient's information.

"He is sometimes. I'll let you finish your work," John turned away.

"There's a patient waiting for you in Room 6. Here's his file," she grabbed a desk file and slid it to him. He took it and thanked her, then walked into Room 6.

"So, Mr. Novak, can you tell me why you're here again?" John shut the door and began talking to his patient.

*Maria's and Sherlock's POV*

"What do you _mean_ 'just like you'? I interviewed her myself! There's no possible way she is anything like you." Anderson looked pretty steamed. No doubt he was beginning to see red.

People were starting to stare, not that any of the three minded. Even Lesterade was watching.

"I mean," Sherlock was clearly enjoying this, "She can tell you've had a 'night out' with Sgt. Donavan last night by sniffing your cologne."

"That is absurd-"

"Girls!" Maria suddenly spoke up, "please shut up." Anderson glared at her. She had to remind herself that he was her boss. "I'm sorry Anderson, but you two are causing a scene. I know it always happens, but it needs to stop," She walked away, leaving the two, and the stares surrounding them, behind.

"She's right." Sherlock spoke.

"What?"

"You need to shut up," Sherlock happily followed Maria to her desk. Anderson grumbled something and slapped the file on her desk and stalked away.

"Was that necessary?" Maria sat in her rolling chair and slowly spun in it.

"Was what necessary?" he put on an innocent face.

"Making my boss mad," she stopped spinning and flipped through the file.

"Completely," he looked over her shoulder. She then closed it and stuck a Sticky Note to it saying, 'Arrest the creepy pervert'. Sherlock smiled a bit at that, and then quickly made it disappear.

"You just got here and already solved the case you were just handed?" he asked, knowing the answer.

"Easy case, and I guess they don't want me working with all of the drunk idiots in jail anymore," she smiled to herself and rubbed her knuckles. _I hated the job, _she thought, _but punching that man was so fun._

"Fight?" he asked.

"The guy grabbed me, so I knocked him out." She stated, twirling in the chair again. Sherlock chuckled. _I like this woman._

She looked around her desk, "Are there any more cases? I hope there are."

_Ring, ring. Ring, Ring. _Sherlock's phone went off. He dug around in his overcoat- that looked eerily similar to Maria's- for his phone.

"Hello? Sherlock speaking."

"Sherlock?" an elderly woman's voice came through the phone. Maria could just make out the word from where she was sitting.

"Ms. Hudson? What's happened?" he tensed up a bit. _Protective of her_, Maria thought._ Not mother, but family friend maybe?_

"Some men are here for you. They just barged right in and-"

"What men? Do you know?"

"They didn't say. Oh, hold on."

"Ms. Hudson? Come back to the phone now and tell me what's going on," he was determining the fastest route to his flat, while trying to think of who could be there with her.

"The tallest one says they need to see you now. They won't leave until they do." She sounded a bit frightened.

"Tell him I'm coming," Sherlock hung up the phone and rushed out, not saying a word to Maria or anyone.

_What was that about?_ She thought to herself. _It certainly looks more exciting than staying here._ She stood and grabbed the file, walking to Anderson's desk. "Can I go and see the crime scene?"

Anderson looked up from his computer, "Can you really do what he says you can do?"

Maria shifted around a little, uncomfortable. "Um…kinda." She saw a bit of anger in his eyes, but it was mostly at himself.

"Just…go," he directed his attention back at his computer. She quickly thanked him and ran out, placing the file on her desk before leaving. Hailing a cab, she thought back to when the old lady called Sherlock. _What did her profile picture show? _Maria thought, picturing the image in her mind.

It was a smiling woman, who looked between the ages of 50 and 65. Her hair was short, and she was outdoors, in front of a building. A number plate behind her read 221B. _B? What's B stand for? _She ran street names in her mind, finally coming up with one nearby.

The cab pulled up, and she opened the door and stepped in. "Baker Street," She told the driver.


	5. Chapter 4

Two of a Kind

**Author's Note:** (I'm uploading this from my phone so I have NO IDEA if its gonna work) Sorry that John's and Em's POV is so short. I have a hard time writing them. Also, I've been really busy lately with school and workouts and soccer practice. So updates might become a bit more spread out.

**DO NOT OWN ANY OF THE CHARACTERS BESIDES MARIA AND EMILY**

Chapter 4

*Emily's and John's POV*

_Okay, it's just two sentences. That's all. Just say "Hey, John. Would you like to get dinner sometime?" _Emily slowly walked into John's office.

She knocked on the doorframe, "Hey Joh-what's wrong?" He stuffed his phone into his pocket and stood, looking for something.

"I need to go. Ms. Hudson, my landlady, is in a bit of trouble," he grabbed his jacket and quickly put it on.

"Oh. Is there anything I can do?" She was a bit let down. John saw this, but didn't have time to ask why.

"Just…tell Sarah what I told you," he squeezed past Emily and ran out, leaving her a bit confused. She told their boss that John left, and she muttered something about Sherlock and "always getting into trouble".

*John's and Maria's POV*

John tried to hail a cab, but it seemed that each one didn't care to pick him up. _How does Sherlock hail one on the first try every time?_ Eventually, one stopped for him. He jumped inside and told the cabbie the address. The car pulled out, leaving John time to think while he waited.

_Who would want to mess with Ms. Hudson? She's just a poor old lady._ He didn't even realize they had stopped until the driver told him to get out.

Stepping out, he paid the man and slammed the door closed. He ran up to the door of his flat and barged in. He heard voices upstairs. Not knowing if Sherlock had a gun to his head again, John kept a hand on his, ready to take it out if necessary. He slowly walked up the stairs, trying not to make a sound. He began to understand what the voices were saying.

"She's not the one that got him executed," John heard Sherlock say.

"Then who?" an angry voice replied.

"Who do you think?! Perhaps it's the one that worked his case." John could hear the "Oh god, you're such a moron" in his friends voice. He heard footsteps behind him, grabbed the handle of his gun, and turned. A woman with light brown hair and clear blue eyes appeared behind him.

She held one finger to her lips and slowly approached. Her eyes seemed to have the same kind of curiosity and joy John sees in Sherlock, when he's presented with a case.

'Are they upstairs?' She mouthed. John nodded, and began to ascend a few more steps, when one creaked.

"What was that?" a strange voice asked. Maria pulled John into a shadow on the staircase and stood in the middle. Quickly, she made herself look frightened. _What is she doing?_ John wondered, about to pull her into the shadow with him.

A large man appeared, with an aggravated look on his face. "Who the heck are you?"

"I'm here to see my grandmother. What's going on?" John was ready to step out, when he noticed something. She looked at the man the same way Sherlock looks at people like that. He saw her wrinkle her brow for a second, and then put back on her 'fear face'. Was it possible that there's another person like Sherlock?

"Well, you came at just the right time," He stepped forward and grabbed her arm, pulling her up. She gasped and struggled, but he just lifted her off her feet. John stepped one foot out when he saw her mouth, 'Stay and listen.' She had a smirk on her face as the large man carried her up the stairs.

_Oh, god no._ John thought, _Another Sherlock._

Maria saw the look of realization on the short blond man's face as the man carried her. She began to think of the information her brain was feeding her. _Large man, approximately 347 lbs. Got an 'All-American truck driver' look to him. Recently divorced. Youngest in the family. Does all of the 'dirty work' for them. He's been on the road. Tired and weak. A blow in the stomach or knees would knock him down._

He almost literally threw her into the chair beside the old lady she saw on Sherlock's phone. Looking around, she saw two more men looking exactly like the truck driver, but bigger. Sherlock held a look of anger, but a hint of excitement, on his face.

"Who is she and what is she doing here?" the largest man asked, looking her directly in the eyes.

"I came to see my grandmother," she grabbed Ms. Hudson's hand and held her frightened look. "What's going on?"

"These men are a bit upset about their brother passing. Six years ago." Sherlock walked around the flat and tapped on random things. Ms. Hudson turned to Maria, about to say something, when she knew to play along.

"Can't you just let her go? She didn't do anything wrong," the old woman turned to the three men.

"Naw," the middle-sized one said. "We'll keep her. She's pretty cute," he walked up and ran his fingers through Maria's hair. It took her every ounce of self-control not to punch this guy in the groin.

_"When I first saw that bikini top on her, she's poppin right out of the South Georgia water. Thought, 'Oh good lord, she had them long tan legs!' Couldn't help myself so I walked up and said:"_ Maria's phone started singing Cruise by Florida Georgia Line. Everyone looked down at her as she dug her phone out of her pocket and answered the call.

"Hello? Em?" Maria said into the phone.

"Hey, no call-" The youngest started to grab for her phone.

She snatched it out of his reach and said, "Don't you know it's rude to do that?" Sherlock smiled a bit and said, "Let her answer the call. It's just her friend calling to ask her to pick up some food," he winked at her.

"Fine," the youngest gumbled, walking away.

"Maria?! What's going on?" Em was going into full-on panic mode.

"Chill. I'm okay," she lied. "Are you?"

"Where are you?" Maria heard rustling in the background.

"I told you I don't like the baker on our street," Maria looked around, hoping no one realized what she was doing.

"What?" Em sounded confused. A few seconds passed before she knew. "You're at Baker Street? Where at there?"

"I already said no. I'm not buying the €221 dress, Because I wouldn't wear it again," Maria prayed that she would understand.

"221b Baker Street. I'm coming." She heard a door close.

"No, you don't need to help pay for it. I don't even want it." She glanced around the apartment and saw Sherlock in the corner, silently laughing. _He's laughing at the men's stupidity._ She choked down her own laughter and hung up the phone.

What's going on up there? John thought, after listening to the conversation Maria had on the phone.

"Sorry. Em likes to try to hook my loner self up with guys," he heard her say. He immediately thought of Sherlock for some reason. Strange…

"If you need someone-" John heard a thud upstairs, followed by a pistol being cocked. _Now!_ His mind screamed. He quickly walked upstairs and drew his gun, pointing it at the one who carried the woman up the stairs.

"Oh, John. How nice of you to join us. We're just having a nice little chat." Sherlock looked at him, and mouthed, 'Ms. Hudson's ex-husband's brothers'. "Now, can't we get on with why you're here? I'm getting bored"

"Not until he drops the gun," the youngest glared at John, then looked at his brother moaning on the ground beside the woman. _This must be Emily's flatmate, Maria,_ he thought.

She looked at John and said, "Oh, just drop the gun. They're Americans like me. Won't back down 'less you do first." A few seconds passed before John slowly dropped the gun and raised his hands. "Now, yours?"

He tossed the gun on the coffee table and sat down beside it. John could almost hear Ms. Hudson click her tongue.

"Finally. Now, you three mind filling me in on why you're here terrorizing my poor grandma?" Maria looked terrified, yet brave. Fantastic acting John thought. Maybe better than Sherlock.

"Sure," the oldest spoke,"She got our brother, her husband, in jail and killed in Florida.


	6. Chapter 5

Two of a Kind

**Author's Note**: I've been super busy lately with soccer (we won our first game 3-2!) and school. So…sorry! I'll try to update faster and procrastinate less next time!

**I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THE CHARACTERS BESIDES MARIA AND EMILY. **

Chapter 5

*Maria's and The Boy's POV*

Maria was a bit shocked. _This old woman? She's clearly too nice for that. Perhaps he was abusive or a cheater…_ She looked at Sherlock. He had a serious look on his face, like he knew something no one else did. He kept glancing at Ms. Hudson.

"Charles…" Ms. Hudson murmured to herself. She kept her head down and avoided looking at anything but her lap.

There was a knock on the door. Everyone stiffened, and John walked downstairs and answered it. Sherlock heard the muttered voices of policemen and Anderson. John quickly returned, the men following him. There were 2 policemen, followed by Anderson. He looked shocked and angry to see Maria. _She must have lied to him so she could follow me,_ the detective thought, amused that she choose a sociopath over her own job.

Maria saw her boss enter, and knew he was angry at her. His eyes were practically bulging out of their sockets. Knowing she was in trouble she kept her eyes on the mid-aged intruder. He seemed to be the type of person to attack an officer. _Not that I would mind him attacking Anderson…_ she thought to herself.

"Maria?! What are you _doing _here?!" Anderson asked, stomping to her and Ms. Hudson. She looked up and gripped Maria's hand tighter.

"Sherlock looked troubled when he left. You said he was the kind to get himself buried too deep in anything he does. I was afraid that he would be in danger, so I followed him," Maria didn't exactly _lie_, she just dodged the truth a bit. Anderson looked like he was trying to calm himself. It wasn't working. The extra men stood by John and eyed the three brothers.

"Why are you here?" the oldest intruder asked. He puffed his chest out a bit and stood tall.

"Obviously, Jim, someone called them- not Maria- and told them you were here. And they came. Can you use your small brain now and _think_?" Sherlock insulted him. Jim glared at him, but said nothing.

"Shit, Em." Maria muttered. Ms. Hudson heard her and lightly popped her hand. _Oops, _she glanced around the room to see if anyone else had heard her. Sherlock cracked a smile in her direction.

John saw his friend's smile, and looked to Maria, who scrunched her nose for a second in Sherlock's direction, then stopped as if nothing happened. He looked back and forth between the two, and instantly became confused. _He's acting a bit off. By now, he would have kicked the police out and given us more information about the three brothers, while claiming that we are all idiots for not knowing these things._

"Now," Anderson turned to the brothers, a bit calmer, "Why are you here?"

"We had to ask Sherlock a few questions on a case he worked a couple years ago," Jim answered. Anderson looked around the room, making eye contact with everyone but Maria. He asked a few 'mandatory' questions, then said, "Well, then it looks like there's no trouble here. Let's go," he turned to his men, still standing by John, and gestured for them to go ahead. "Make sure to tell the woman outside that she needs to be more careful when she calls the police. One more miscall, and she'll be fined," He told his men.

"Emily's here?" Maria asked, sounding a bit worried. Anderson didn't answer and walked out.

"I'll be right back," John followed the men outside, hoping to see Emily. He saw her sitting on the street corner, one of the policemen talking to her. John walked over to her.

"Okay. I won't" she said, looking up at the standing officer.

"Thank you. Have a good day ma'am," he walked away, leaving John and Em alone.

"Hey, Emily. What are you doing here?" he already knew the answer.

"Oh, John! I didn't see you," he helped her up, "I was worried for Maria. She's gotten in some hairy spots."

"I understand. So does Sherlock," John tried to cheer her up from the officer's talk with her.

"Is she okay?"

"Yes, but I wouldn't recommend walking in. One of the brothers in there got a bit…handsy," He looked back at the door of his flat. He needed to get back in there soon, but he didn't want to leave Emily alone on the street.

"Oh…Maria did something to him, didn't she?" the corners of her lips turned up slightly.

"Punched the poor man in the gut, I think," he shuddered at the thought of her hitting him anywhere else.

"If you need to go back in, you can. I'll go back to work. I told Sarah what was happening. She's fine," Em quickly explained.

"Good. And, thanks for covering for me," John said goodbye and began to walk back to his flat. He was about to turn and ask Em to dinner this afternoon, when he got a text from Sherlock.

'**When you're done flirting, we have some guests that need attention. –SH**' John rolled his eyes and walked in, convincing himself that he can ask tomorrow.

Maria kept her eye on the window by her, watching Em and John. She saw Em get a bit close to him and smile. _Someone's got a crush._ She didn't see John back away, either. Maria smiled and looked away. _I'm so gonna hook them up together._

She caught Sherlock staring at her, a bit confused. She cocked her head sideways a bit and mouthed, 'What?'

'What's going on outside?' he mouthed back

'Johnny-boy and Em are flirting,' her grin got even bigger just thinking about it. Sherlock took his phone out of his pocket and sent a text, most likely to John, then slid it back in his overcoat pocket. After about a minute, she heard John close the door and walk up the stairs.

"Sorry, I just wanted to check on- what are you staring at?" he asked Maria.

"The blush in your cheeks that's fading, the spring in your step, and the happiness in your eyes," she answered. She saw the corner of Sherlock's lips turn up a bit. John blushed even more and said, "Oh…well…um…I was thinking about asking her to dinner…"his voice trailed off, slightly embarrassed.

"Ask her. She totally digs you," Maria said.

"What?"

"American for: She likes you." She rolled her eyes and shifted her attention to the youngest brother, who was trying to sneak out one of the doorways.

"Come on. A _toddler_ can come up with a better escape plan than that," she insulted him. The other brothers looked at him like they've just seen him for the first time.

"It's true, Michael. Now, if we're done here, would you mind leaving? I have experiments to attend to," Sherlock walked to the kitchen and waited to hear them leave. They argued a bit before finally deciding to leave.

Maria squeezed Ms. Hudson's hand before letting go and standing to escort them out. The mid-sized one, who introduced himself as Damien, slid his hand around her waist just as they were leaving. He ended up on the floor again, with a handprint on his cheek and heel mark on his shin.

"You would think he'd learn better," John muttered and shook his head.

Maria closed the door and walked back up, wanting to see this 'experiment' of Sherlock's. Walking in, she saw him digging through his fridge. She began to walk over, when John stopped her.

"I wouldn't look in there, if I were you," he warned.

"And why not?"

"Well…" he seemed to not want to answer. She rolled her eyes and looked over Sherlock's shoulder. She saw pickled eyes, intestines, and multiple fingers and toes.

"That's not so bad. You shoulda seen my old apartment. I got evicted after the owner walked in on one of my own," She shrugged and turned away, only to see John's jaw drop.

"Why are you shocked?"

"Nothing…" _They're exactly alike! The experiments, the insults, the deducing skills, even the bloody clothing._

"It's something. Just share when you want to," Maria glanced at the clock, "Oh, I've got to go. I need to arrest a pervert before he leaves the country."

"Wha…never mind. Have a good day, Maria."

"You too, John. Buh-bye!" She practically skipped out of there. _She really is strange,_ John thought.


	7. Chapter 6

Two of a Kind

Chapter 6

*John's POV*

The next day, John woke up to his phone vibrating. _Buzz, buzz._ He cracked his eyes open and checked it. Unknown. _Sherlock probably gave out my number again. _Sighing, he checked the message.

'**Wear emerald green on your date with Em. –MC**' _MC? Oh, Maria. Not even going to ask how she got my number. _He was about to roll out of bed, when he got another message.

'**Also, you're late for work. –MC**' He paused, looking at the clock on his phone. It read '9:45'. _How do they _do_ that?! _He thought as he got out of bed and hastily got dressed. He hopped into the living room, and saw Sherlock on the couch, his back turned to everything else.

"Hurry, John. It takes you approximately 17 minutes to get to work," Sherlock then muttered, "If you can actually hail one…"

"I know. Why didn't you wake me?"

"Busy."

"Busy? Doing _what_?" John began slipping his shoes on.

"Thinking and texting."

"Oh. You were too busy _texting_ to wake me up," John said, with a hint of sarcasm and anger in his voice.

"Yes. I needed to fill Maria in on the history of brothers that came in yesterday." Sherlock said, unmoving from his position. John sighed and left, not even saying goodbye. It took him three tries to hail a cab. He kept his eye on his watch. Sure enough, he got to work in exactly 17 minutes. He immediately signed in at the desk- after paying the cabbie, of course- and walked into Sarah's office and explained why he was late.

"Well, I've taken care of three of your patients, so stay a bit after-hours and help out. That'll make up for it." She looked back at her computer, and he took that as a clue to thank her and get out of her office.

He saw Emily at the front desk, and walked over- partly to say "Hi," and partly to go ahead and get to work.

"Hey, Emily. How's your day been?"

"Fine. You have a patient waiting in room 14," she grabbed a file and handed it to him. "Nice shirt." He grabbed the file and looked down, realizing he had taken Maria's advice without knowing. "Oh, thanks." He looked up and smiled at her, then walked to the room. _I can ask her during the lunch break. _He told himself as he greeted his patient. "So, it says here you've been having severe headaches?" He closed the door and began discussing what could be causing them.

*Maria's POV*

She finished typing the second text to John and set her phone down on the floor next to her. She heard some co-workers grow quiet as they walked past her. She rolled her eyes and spoke, "I know you were talking about me, boys. Try not to be so obvious next time." They stopped and stared at her as she lifted the 20lb dumbbell and began to do curls. _Why doesn't hardly anyone use the work-out room in the station? It's perfectly fine._

The men walked over and grabbed weights 10lb heavier than hers. She saw a vein slightly bulge in both of their arms.

"Those weights are too heavy for you. Stop trying to show off and use a weight that won't hurt you."

"This is fine. I never caught your name, what is it?" the larger of the two asked.

"Maria. 5…4..." she began to count down.

"Why are you counting?"

"3…2…1." At that moment, the shorter of the two men dropped his dumbbell and grabbed his arm, gasping in pain.

"What the hell?! How did you-"

"Simple deduction. It's just a cramp. He'll be fine in about 3 minutes as long as he stretches his arm out. Don't be idiots next time." The two men glared at her as she put away the weights and walked away. She heard them mutter something, distinctly hearing the words "crazy" and "freak".

She picked up her phone and left the workout area, going to the bathroom with a change of clothes. A few minutes later, she reappeared at her desk. A slim, dark woman was waiting for her.

"Hey, rookie. Where've you been?" she asked, leaning on Maria's desk.

"The name's Maria. I've been in the workout room." She sat down and looked up at Sgt. Donovan.

"Well, I've heard you've been with the psychopath." She said with a bit of disappointment in her voice.

"Sociopath," she immediately corrected her. "And I don't see what the big deal is."

She scoffed. "He's crazy. I have my suspicions about him."

"I'm sure you do. Now, if you don't mind telling me about Sophie Benson, please?"

"How did you…" she revealed a file hidden by her leg and slowly gave it to her.

"I saw the name on the file," she said as she opened it and flipped through it.

"Oh. Well, she found her boyfriend's body in the alley of a pub. He was killed. Knife wounds to the neck." She looked relieved, watching Maria flip through the file. A few seconds later, Maria spoke up.

"Sophie isn't the victim. Arrest her," she handed the file back to Sgt. Donovan and took her phone out of her pocket, turning it on. Donovan opened the file, confused, and looked through it, making sure she hadn't missed something. "How can you tell?"

"From the picture. Her hand is raised slightly, right beside the end of her hair." She didn't look up, but continued using her phone, occasionally typing something.

"You're wrong. She was crying at the crime scene. She called 911 herself," she began to get a bit aggravated.

"Ever heard of _acting_?" The phone's screen went dark and Maria looked up. "Now, where is she?"

"At her home, where you'll _not_ be going" Sgt. Donovan stood straight, as if saying, '_I'm in charge. You'll do as I say_'. Maria rolled her eyes and dialed a number into her phone. After a few rings, someone answered.

"Hello?" a tired voice asked.

"Hi, Miss Sophie. This is Sgt. Donovan. We've recently made a new discovery about your boyfriend's death," Maria faked a British accent, and was rather good at it. She ignored Donovan's protests and stood up, moving away.

"Oh, what is it?" Sophie sounded a bit nervous.

"It's best I told you in person. How fast can you get here?"

"About 10 minutes."

"Thank you. And please, hurry." Maria hung up the phone and slid it in her pocket. Turning around, she faced a _very annoyed_ woman.

"I told you not-"

"To go and find her. I didn't. I called her," Maria finished smugly, walking back to her desk and sitting on the edge. Donovan stared at her for a minute, deciding what to do.

"Anderson is looking for you." Maria broke the silence.

"What?"

"Sally! I have some news." Anderson walked over, smiling. Her mouth opened just enough for no one to notice-except for Maria.

"Oh, what is it?" she finally responded.

"We have to do another search in Psycho's flat."

"Drugs bust. There's nothing there," Maria said. Anderson glared at her, clearly still mad from yesterday.

"Doesn't matter," He began to explain that they do it mainly just to get information he wouldn't give otherwise.

"That's stupid, and I was there yesterday. Just ask me." She moved from the corner of her desk to her chair, leaning back in it. Anderson pursed his lips, then said, "Fine. Go to Lesterade's office." He looked a bit disappointed, but didn't say it.

She stood up and walked to Lesterade's office. As she got in there, she pulled out her phone and texted Sherlock, '**I just saved your butt. You owe me. –MC**'


	8. Chapter 7

Two of a Kind

Chapter 7

*Sherlock's POV*

Sherlock was home playing his violin when his phone vibrated. Normally he would ignore it, but he knew it would be from Maria. He set down his instrument and took his phone from the windowsill. The screen lit up, and he read the message. '**I just saved your butt. You owe me –MC**' Confused, he sent back '**How? –SH** '

He expected her not to respond for a while, so he went back to his violin, continuing the composition he was currently making. His mind drifted as he slid the bow across the strings. _How did she save me? And _why_? _He thought of what could have happened at the police station, but none of his guesses seemed right. He just _couldn't_ deduce anything about it. Thinking back to yesterday, he realized that instead of paying attention and deducing every little thing he could, he stared at her the whole time. _I'm just curious about how advanced her skills are,_ he reassured himself. _Nothing more. _

An hour past before he got a reply. Not knowing what to expect, he lit up the screen of his phone. '**They wanted to do a fake drugs bust to get info. You're welcome. –MC**' He was a bit shocked. Not at what they wanted to do, but that she tried to help him without a second thought. He probably would have never done the same. He sat on the couch, bringing his fingers to his lips. He thought about how much he _actually_ knew about her. '_Looks about 27. Long, light brown hair and clear blue eyes. Her best-and possibly only-friend is Emily. Works at that dreaded police station. Always carries a hand gun with her. Her boss is Anderson. Moved from America-judging from the accent. Siblings? Relationship with parents? Schooling? Was she born with her gift?' _Questions swarmed his mind. He got a headache from all of them, so he laid down with his back facing everything else. He heard Ms. Hudson walk in and ask something.

"Sherlock? Who was that young girl that came in yesterday?"

"That's what I'd like to know," Sherlock muttered. He said louder, "Her name is Maria. She works with the police."

"Well, she's very pretty. Bit violent and potty-mouthed though. She needs to learn to be more ladylike." He heard her set down some glass on the side table and sit in the chair beside it.

He smiled a bit, and decided he needed to know more about her before anything else happened. Thinking for a bit, he came up with a plan on how to do just that.

*John's POV*

John checked his watch. 12:30. _Lunch break_, he thought. He took in a big breath and sighed, standing up. He walked to the main room, looking for Emily. '_Maria said that she likes you. She'll say yes.' _He gave himself a little pep talk as he walked up to her, sitting alone at the main desk.

"Hey Emily, what are you still doing here?" he felt like a zoo was bouncing around in his stomach.

"Hi, John." she looked up, smiling. "Just working on some last-minute paperwork before lunch."

"Oh. Well…" he repeated the pep talk in his mind, "I was wondering if you'd like to have dinner this afternoon? With me?" Oh god, he was nervous.

She smiled brightly. John's spirits lifted tremendously as she said, "I'd like that. Where?" _She said yes!_ His mind cheered.

"Tierra Brindisa. It's on Northumberland Street," he answered. A smile crept onto his battle-worn face.

"I've heard of it. What time?" He told her 7:00, then thanked her. He smiled as he walked to the back room. He had a date at 7:00 with Emily.

His phone buzzed once. Expecting it to be from Maria, he took it out and read, '**Congrats. Don't screw up. –MC**'.

*Maria's POV*

_Finally,_ she thought as she sunk back in her desk chair. _I thought they'd never stop asking questions._ Just as she closed her eyes, her phone vibrated. Groaning, she pulled her phone out of her overcoat pocket and read the message from Emily. '**I got a date w/ John this afternoon! Tierra Brindisa at 7:00.**'

'**Told you he'd ask today. -MC****'** she replied. Bored, she spun in her chair-until a young blond woman (_Definitely younger than me,_ Maria thought, _21?_) cleared her throat in front of her desk.

"Miss Donovan?" she asked. She looked rather nervous, but held her composure.

"Please, call me Sally." Maria slowed the spinning to a halt and smiled at the little murderer. "Now, feel free to grab the chair from his desk," she pointed to the desk that the flirt in the workroom sits at, "he's not here today."

"Oh, okay." Sophie walked over and wheeled it to the front of Maria's desk. "What did you figure out?" Maria saw her slightly raise her hand to twirl her hair.

"Well, the person that killed Mr. Lucas is in this building somewhere," she saw her tense up, but relax not even a second later.

"What do you mean?"

"We have reason to believe it was your father. He's in a jail cell now," She lied. _If you try to make him take the blame, I'm making sure your cell here has a drunk already in it._

"What?" she looked around, panicked.

"It'll be okay, things like this happen all the time in the US. Just, relax." Maria was having fun with this.

"It's not-" she clamped her mouth shut before she finished.

"Excuse me? It's not him?" _Come on, this is your chance to get an empty cell. Take it, idiot._

Sophia's bottom lip trembled, "It wasn't my dad. Can you get him out?" she looked on the verge of tears. _Great actress._

"Then who was it?"

"I'm not sure," Sophia didn't meet her eyes. _The drunk it is, then._

"He's not even here. Now, please stand for me." Maria stood up and walked beside Sophia.

"Why?" she stood, acting confused. Maria took the handcuffs off her desk and slapped them on Sophia's wrists in one swift movement. Sophia gasped and looked up at her. She opened her mouth to say something, but stopped when she saw an angry woman stalk toward them.

"What the heck do you think you're doing?!" Sally asked.

"Arresting another murderer. What are you doing?" Maria said innocently. Sophia tried to say she wasn't the one who killed her boyfriend, but Donovan shushed her.

"You can't just do that!"

"Can't I?" Maria pulled Sophia down the hall, in the direction of the cells. Donovan caught up to them and tried to stop her, but wasn't able to.

"Oh, and by the way, I'm not Donovan. Name's Maria Campbell, extraordinary genius." She winked at her as she pushed open the door, leading to another hall. The footsteps behind them stopped, letting them slow down a bit.

When they got there, a co-worker immediately took Sophia-protesting the whole time-and stuck her in the jail cell of Maria's choice ("The one with the sweaty drunk, please."). Sophia was shouting profanities at Maria by then. She just ignored them and walked out, whistling.

Donovan was flaming by the time Maria got back.

"Why he doesn't fire you now- if I was your boss, you'd be on the street," she went on. Maria half-listened, simply waiting for her to let out all the steam. Finally, she gave up on lecturing her and walked away, no doubt to Anderson. _I'm so gonna get fired._ She thought to herself.

She decided that, instead of focusing on her future firing, she would think about Em's and John's date-and how to follow them in case anything goes wrong.


	9. Chapter 8

Two of a Kind

**Author's Note:** Thank you for favoriting/following the story and all of the kind reviews! It really brightens my day when I see them. Anyway, I'm gonna be really busy next week with working in the Harvest Festival at school, so no updates then. Sorry :/

Chapter 8

*John's POV*

John finally left the hospital at 6:00, leaving him with an hour to get to his flat, get ready, and then go to Tierra Brindisa and wait for Emily. He had offered to pick her up and take her, but she refused.

Opening the door to his flat, he quickly walked to his bedroom to get ready. He heard Sherlock say something, but decided to ignore it. It was probably something like asking for a pen while he was gone. John rummaged through his closet, and found a nice-looking sweater. A few minutes later, he walked to the living room and looked into the mirror on the wall. After making some final adjustments, he looked around, surprised he hadn't heard any comments from his flatmate.

Sherlock walked in from the kitchen with a grey shirt and a robe on and a test tube in his hand. He looked at John, gave a disapproving look, and turned back to the kitchen without a word.

"What's wrong with my outfit?" John followed him.

"You didn't even change your pants. It had a medicine stain on it." Sherlock put the test tube in its holder and placed it in the fridge. John looked down at his pants, and sure enough, he had a pinkish stain by his knee.

"Oh, well, thanks." He walked back to his bedroom. He heard Sherlock say, "Hurry up, or you'll be late."

35 minutes later, John was at Tierra Brindisa waiting for Emily. He saw a few people enter and leave, but none were her. Finally, at exactly 7:00, she walked through the door and looked around for John. She was wearing a nice, casual dress. But she still looked stunning to him.

He stood from his table and walked over to her. After greeting each other, he walked her to the table and pulled out a chair for her.

"Thank you," Em sat down, and John pushed her chair in, "This place looks nice. Have you been here before?"

"Actually, yes." He told her about his first visit, during the case he named 'A Study in Pink'. They chatted and seemed to be enjoying themselves. Neither one of them noticed a woman walk in and request a table near theirs.

*Maria's and Sherlock's POV*

Maria walked in, desperately trying not to scratch her wig. She knew that Em would kill her if she knew she followed them, so she decided to go with a blond wig and an absurd amount of preppy colors. She looked like she just walked out of a sorority.

She asked for a table somewhat close to Em's, and sat facing them. Luckily, Em's back was to her. Maria sat there in her disguise for about 5 minutes before anything interesting happened. A man with black, curly hair and sharp cheekbones sat in front of her.

"Hi, Maria. You decided to follow them too?" Sherlock's eyes shone with curiosity.

"Yea. Figured you would too." She focused her attention to him.

"Nice wig."

"Nice disguise," she retorted.

"Thanks. Took me an hour to make it," he rolled his eyes and saw a smile crack on her face.

"I never thought a date could be that _boring,_" she looked at Em and John's table. "I mean, aren't you supposed to have fun?"

"According to John, yes," he didn't turn around, but kept his eyes on Maria. He had a million questions running though his mind, but didn't know which to ask first.

"Well, he should have chosen the London Eye or something. She's never been there," she said just as her phone beeped. She dug it out of the purse and looked at it for a second, then typed something and put it back in her bag. "Dad," she relieved Sherlock of his curiosity.

"Why would he be texting you?"

"He's having trouble at work. That's all I'm telling you," He decided to drop it.

"I never got to thank you for helping me avoid Anderson. He's a pain to deal with. I don't know how you do it without hurting him,"

"There's a punching bag in the weight room that kinda looks like him. And I'm probably gonna get fired soon. I don't think they like me very much." She said casually, like losing her job was not a big deal.

A waiter decided to walk up before Sherlock could reply, "Welcome to Tierra Brindisa. My name's Alex, I'll be your server for the evening. Can I get you anything to drink?" he glanced at their unopened menus, "should I come back in a little bit?"

"No, its fine. I'll just have tea." Sherlock said.

"I'll have Coke," She looked up at the waiter, who just stared at her. "What?"

"She means the drink," Sherlock said, and murmured under his breath, "Moron"

"Oh, well, okay." He scribbled down the orders on his notepad and said, "Your drinks will be here in a few minutes," He quickly left.

"Well then," She glanced at Em and John, who had just received their meals and were laughing about something. "Do y'all not say Coke here when you're talking about a soda?"

"No. It's either Soda or Pop here. And we don't say 'y'all'" he teased her a bit about her accent.

"Well, why don't I just order a scalding hot tea then and drink it with my pinkie held up," she said in a British accent, imitating drinking tea. Sherlock chuckled a bit and said, "Are you always this childish?"

"Why not? That's the fun part about being an adult." she asked. _She's even more of a mystery than I thought._ Sherlock changed the subject to the case when their drinks came and they-well, she-began to order the food.

*John's and Emily's POV*

John laughed about a story Em told, and briefly looked over her shoulder, noticing a familiar dark, curly head. _Really? _He thought, before realizing that his friend was with a blond woman. And they were talking. And the woman was smiling at him.

"John?" Emily asked, "You okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine, but I think Sherlock followed us here." _Who's the woman? Is she- are they on a date?_ John was shocked. Emily asked what he looked like and turned around, scanning the tables.

"Him?" she looked at John and moved her head in Sherlock's direction.

"Yes, him."

"If he's here, then Maria probably is too," Em paused for a moment, then looked all around the restaurant. _She's probably Miss Queen Bee across from Sherlock._

John watched his flatmate excuse himself and head for the bathroom.

"Excuse me, I'll be right back," he told Em, standing up and following Sherlock. When he opened the door, he saw him pacing back and forth in front of the stalls.

"Sherlock? What are you _doing_ here?" John moved out of the doorway.

"What does it look like? I'm thinking." Sherlock continued pacing.

"I mean, what are you doing in a restaurant with a woman?" he tried to hide his shock.

"Research."

"It looks like you're on a date."

Sherlock paused, ""I don't date. You know that."

"Well, then what do you call it? You're in a nice restaurant, sitting at a table with a woman, and she looks like she's enjoying herself." John explained to him

"She does?" Sherlock scrunched his eyebrows, and John saw a spark of hope in his eyes.

"Yes. Just…don't say anything rude to her," he saw Sherlock roll his eyes, "Now, if you don't mind, I'm going back to Em. You should do the same, to whoever the blonde lady is." John left Sherlock standing there, looking slightly shocked.

"Sorry," John sat back down in front of Emily, who was eating her food.

"It's fine. What did he say?" Em didn't say it in a harsh tone, but John still tensed up a bit, ready for her to accuse him of something.

"That he was doing 'research'" He saw Sherlock return to his own table and chat with the blonde woman. From what he saw, she brightened up a bit when he arrived.

"Don't worry. I'm not really that surprised or anything. In fact, it's probably Maria under the wig," Em said just as John took a bite of his food. It took everything he had to not let it drop out of his mouth.

"Are you sure?"

"Do you want me to check?" She pulled out her phone, ready to type something.

"If you don't mind." He looked at what she was typing. '**WHAT TEAM?**' Em looked at the blonde and saw her check her phone, smiling. She mouthed something as she typed. Em got a text back reading, '**WILDCATS**'.

"It's her," she put her phone up. _What the bloody hell was that? _John thought. Em saw his confusion and answered, "It's some American movie she watched in college. She loves it."

"So Maria and Sherlock are watching our date?" John decided to not question any further on the strange text and take a bite of his food instead.

"Seems so. Looks like they're on one of their own though," she finished her plate and looked up at John. _Do you think we can escape?_ She thought. He seemed to have understood.

John caught the attention of a nearby waiter, "Can I get a to-go box, please?"

"No problem. Check also?"

"Yes, please," John and Em chatted while they waited, crossing their fingers. They hoped that Maria and Sherlock would be too busy focusing on each other to see them leave.

Finally, the check came and John paid-Em insisted on paying the tip-and they left. Luckily, the two detectives were talking so much that they didn't see them leave.


	10. Chapter 9

Two of a Kind

**Author's Note:** This chapter is gonna be all about Sherlock and Maria. Also, I just realized that two people haven't made an appearance (like they usually do when SH gets involved with someone) so expect them in this chapter.

**I STILL DON'T OWN ANYTHING EXCEPT FOR MY OC'S**

Chapter 9

*Sherlock's POV*

After paying the bill, he realized that John and Emily had disappeared. _How did I not notice? _He told himself it was just because he wasn't facing their table.

"Alright, ready to go? I have an annoyed friend to get home to". She placed €5 on the table and blew out the candle in the middle that the restaurant owner had placed there.

"So do I," he assumed she knew that they had already left. Why didn't she tell him then? They stood at the same time and walked out together, Maria thanking Angelo for the free meal ("Anything for Sherlock and his date…" "I'm not his date").

"Well," Maria stood outside the restaurant, "I'll see you later," she said in an exaggerated British accent.

"You sure will," Sherlock mocked her usual American drawl. She cracked a grin and said goodnight, walking away. Sherlock felt a tinge of sadness, but knocked it away as soon as it came. _I don't feel emotion. Especially with other people._ He hailed a cab and rode off to 221B.

*Maria's POV*

_What the heck was that? I _don't _date unless it helps with a case. _She thought back to the dinner with Sherlock. To be honest, she had actually enjoyed herself for the first—no, second—time since she had moved here.

She decided to walk home; it wasn't far from here, and she was expecting someone to appear. Sticking earplugs in her ear, she listened to music on her iPod. Three whole minutes went by before anything strange happened to her, and she wasn't just a random person on the sidewalk anymore.

She heard a faint buzzing as she turned the street corner. Taking out one earplug, she looked around, scanning the street. _Car following me about 2 blocks back. _She didn't see anyone else on the sidewalk, so she ran _towards_ the car. It slowed to a halt, and she jumped onto the hood and sat there. After about a minute, a woman in a slick back dress stepped out of the backseat and said, "Well, hurry up. My boss wants you there as soon as possible."

"How about no." Maria gave her a pout and shook her head.

"And why not?" the woman leaned against the door of the car.

"Hmm…lemme think for a second. You could be a kidnapper. Rapist. Psychopath. Serial Killer. Wait, no. Scratch killer. You don't have the hands for it." Maria saw the slightly insulted look on her face, but didn't do anything about it.

"What makes you think that?" Yep. Insulted.

"I'm an American. Bred to think like that." Maria gave her a wink and hoped off the hood of the car, walking away.

"It's about Sherlock Holmes," the woman calmly said. The detective paused when she heard the name. _Aw crap. Here we go._ She turned around and stepped inside the open door, scooting over to make room for the woman.

"Glad to see you changed your mind, Maria." She stepped in and closed the door. The car immediately started moving.

"Yea. Whatever, Anthea." John had warned her that she might suddenly come and ask her to come with her. "It'll be nice to see the warehouse that John told me about."

Anthea didn't respond and turned to her BlackBerry. Knowing that it would be a long ride, Maria plugged back in her other earplug and watched out the window, memorizing the route they took to the warehouse.

Thirty minutes later, they stopped at a large, abandoned factory. _Here we go. Time to meet the big brother. _As she stepped out of the car, she realized she still had her disguise on. Oh, well.

"Just follow me," Anthea appeared beside Maria and began walking inside, never looking away from her phone. Maria followed her without protest, patting her own leg to the beat of the song playing on the iPod.

After walking what seemed like a mile, Anthea said, "This is where I leave you. Just walk through that door," she absently pointed to the only door in front of them and began walking back the way they came.

Maria confidently walked through the door, and saw a man standing in the middle of the large room, leaning on an umbrella. Maria's brain immediately kicked into gear. _About 37. Older brother, clearly. Has a 'high class' stance and look to him. Is in a bunch of political crap. On a diet, that he's cheating on. Had a donut before he came. Something has aged him. Either his job or Sherlock; probably both. No weapons on him. Considers himself intelligent. He looks pretty smug. That'll be fun to wipe off his face._

She continued walking in, only taking out one earplug and letting it hang by her thigh. "So, I guess you're Mycroft. 'Sup?"

"I'll excuse that since you're from the US," he still held that smug look. _Dang, that's annoying._

"Is it supposed to surprise me that you know where I'm from?" She stopped about 10 ft in front of him.

"A bit. And nice disguise, by the way. We almost didn't recognize you."

"Good. Now, get to the point. I'm getting bored of being here." She began paying attention to the song playing in her ear more than him (Come Alive by Foo Fighters).

"They're right. You're just like my dear brother," Mycroft shook his head slightly and looked at the roof, as if saying '_Why, God? Why send me _another_ one?_'

"I've heard that a lot lately. Can I go now?"

He looked back at her and said, "I'd stay away from him and John. London already has enough to deal with now that we have another version of them. It's best that you and your flatmate Emily Brown don't have anything to do with them. Especially you."

She tensed up when he mentioned her friend. "Hey, don't bring Em into this. And you can't stop me from being one of the few friends your brother has. I'm leaving." She walked away and put back in the earplug bouncing by her leg, but not before she heard Mycroft say:

"Oh, I'm sure you two won't be just friends, Miss Campbell."

*The Boy's POVs*

Sherlock drug himself into his flat, expecting John to bombard him with questions. He was right.

John was sitting at the desk, typing on his laptop. No doubt, submitting a new blog entry. As soon as he walked in, John turned and asked, "Who was she?"

Sherlock suspected he already knew, but answered anyway, "Maria. She wanted to make sure you weren't going to upset Emily in any way." He was rather amused at John's reaction.

"You were on a date…with Maria?"

"No. I was doing research," he laid on the couch and closed his eyes, hoping to end the conversation soon. It was making him a bit uncomfortable.

"Research. That's it? On what?" John grinned.

"Her." Sherlock didn't explain.

"Couldn't you just look at her and come up with the same result?"

Sherlock turned his back to everything else, not answering.

"You _can't_, can you?" John was a bit surprised. Sherlock had told him his own past with one glance, and he couldn't do the same to Maria even though he's known her for two days now.

"No!" his flatmate jumped from the couch and began pacing the room, "I can't. I don't understand it, either. She's the only person I've ever met that has confused me. It's _aggravating_. I don't know how normal people can _stand it_. I-" he went into his usual rant when something confused him. Usually, John would half-pay attention and offer advice in the end that Sherlock would strike down, but he listened this time. "-And I think I'm _feeling_ around her-" John stared at him. _Wait, what? _–"yes, John. _Emotion_." Sherlock threw himself onto the couch again, marking the end of the rant.

"You…like…her?" John didn't know how to handle this. Sick person? Sure. Shooting someone? They're just a target. Dealing with _this_? He'd rather go back to Afghanistan. **(Explanation: John knows that this is very possibly the first 'crush' Sherlock has had. Ever. So he doesn't want to screw it up for him. That's why John seems really freaked out here.) **

Sherlock grunted and turned onto his stomach, his face buried in a pillow.

John closed his laptop and stood, walking to the chair closest to his flatmate. He awkwardly said, "Look…it's fine. Just…tell her how-"

"Continue that sentence, and I'll need you to fetch my revolver," Sherlock said, his voice muffled through the pillow.

John threw his hands up in surrender. "I won't. I won't. Just, hurry." John said goodnight and walked to his bedroom, thinking about what he would say-or _if _to say anything-tomorrow morning.

Sherlock heard John walk away and closed his eyes, even though the pillow blocked most of his vision anyway. He was thankful for the silence, but wished he was ankle-deep in a chaotic case. Wait, he was. _How could I forget about the brothers?! I need-_Sherlock ran a list of things he needed to do in his mind, mainly to keep his focus _off_ of a certain brunette.


End file.
